The human mind is incredibly complex – and life gets challenging. Sometimes our minds and emotions get thrown off balance, leaving us feeling physically, mentally, and emotionally drained.

If you’ve gone through a hard time or faced trauma, your mental health could suffer. Understanding mental illness, being aware of common symptoms, and having a plan for managing on tough days will help you grow and move forward.

Many of us have bad days or weeks, or experience difficult emotions after an event like a death in the family or losing a job. So what makes it a mental illness? Experts agree that the majority of mental illnesses are signaled by stark physical and emotional changes. Where a bad day or poor mood will fade after a short time, a mental illness is characterized by long term symptoms you just can’t seem to shake.

What Symptoms Might My Mental Illness Have?

Symptoms vary according to your mental health diagnosis, but there are some common signs that your mind and emotions may be out of balance.

Your symptoms could be physical or emotional. The key is to be aware of extreme changes or sudden “swings”. If you don’t feel like yourself or don’t understand your behavior, it may be time for a mental health checkup.

How Do I Cope With Mental Illness When Symptoms Are Difficult?

Living with mental illness isn’t easy, but there are plenty of options to help you treat your symptoms and overcome emotional and spiritual roadblocks. You may be prescribed medication or be recommended for talk therapy. Perhaps your pastor or another leader in your faith community may be able to provide additional counselling.

Often mental illness symptoms bring with them a loss of faith. In those times, remember that God is with you and has great plans for your life:

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11).

You’re never on your own when it comes to your mental health; there is always hope. You can find it here. TheHopeline puts mental health resources (including a podcast archive) at your fingertips. If you’re struggling with depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, or addiction, you can request mentorship or prayer right away.

If you or someone you love may be dealing with mental health issues, you may find something in our resource library to help. Search our podcasts, blogs and e-books with your questions about mental illness:

Can mental illness be cured?

Can I still live a full life with mental illness?

How do people who live with mental illness cope on a day-to-day basis?

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Verses of Hope

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Free eBook: Understanding a Relationship with God

A guide to understanding the basics of Christianity and a meaningful relationship with God. Do You Feel Like Life is Meaningless? Are you wondering what your purpose is? Do you have questions about what Christians believe or what it means to be a Christian? At TheHopeLine we believe real and lasting HOPE can only come […]